St. Sebastian's Cemetery

Absolute peace in the middle of the city

In the middle of the right side of Salzburg's centre you will find a spot of land that is dead still as soon as you close the door behind you: St. Sebastian's Cemetery. The impressive architecture inspired by the Italian model of a Campo Santo still attracts many visitors.

Campo Santo

After the former cathedral cemetery had to make way for Residenzplatz Archbishop Wolf Dietrich built St. Sebastian's Cemetery between 1595 and 1600 on an old 15th century plague cemetery.

At the time of the construction the so called Campo Santo (Italian for holy field) was very much in fashion. The specialty of this architectural style: the cemetery is enclose like a courtyard and surrounded by an archway. The outer walls are kept very simple but in the middle visitors find the elaborately designed mausoleum, the Gabriel's Chapel. Vaulted arcade walls and crypt niches give St. Sebastian's Cemetery its very special flair.

Notable decedent

Various aristocratic families are laid to rest in these crypt arcades. Salzburg residents that were already famous when they were still alive and even after their death are also buried here:

• Leopold Mozart, W.A. Mozart's father
• Constanze Weber, W.A. Mozart's widow
• Theophrast von Hohenheim, better known as Paracelsus, physician and alchemist